Bendigo is grappling with many similar issues that mirror the rest of the state, such as the housing and skills shortages. But the LGA has unique issues too, including flood recovery and the cancellation of the Commonwealth Games. The connections we make at these roundtables are invaluable and help us formulate policy and economic solutions that enable us to continue our advocacy.

We’ve also held a special one-day Chamber Change session for women in regional businesses. It has been truly wonderful to see how this program has grown and evolved since its foundation in July 2022. Hearing from Deputy Premier Jacinta Allan about her leadership journey was a highlight, and the day has marked up another success for this fantastic program. And having 75 participants at our session today was just fabulous!

In a jampacked week of events, it was wonderful to welcome so many members, clients and guests to the Crown Palladium for our Victorian Chamber Presents lunch yesterday, thanks to our partners CareSuper and Transurban. A celebration of Victoria’s thriving innovation sector, we were privileged to be joined by keynote speaker, Minister Ben Carroll, who released a new Deloitte report commissioned by LaunchVic. The report celebrates the rapid expansion of Victoria’s startup workforce, which has increased from 37,000 in 2020 to 52,000 FTE jobs in 2022 and, as Minister Carroll shared, is a growth engine for both jobs and productivity which will continue creating thousands of jobs and contribute billions to our state’s economy.

Guests also heard from Dr Kate Cornick, CEO of LaunchVic, Professor Colin McLeod, Executive Director of the Melbourne Entrepreneurial Centre and Tien-Ti Mak, General Manager Strategic Innovation at Transurban. It was an honour to moderate a lengthy panel discussion with these three leading experts across their fields, who each lauded the need for us to keep momentum going in embracing and driving innovation and progress, collaborating with stakeholders from government to startups, and the importance of sustaining a supportive community.

I encourage you to read more about the event here and keep an eye on the Victorian Chamber events page to ensure you don’t miss out on our next one!

Thanks to NewsCorp and 3AW, I was provided the opportunity to comment on the latest ABS report with data reporting that the number of employers shutting up shop has reached its highest recorded annual rate in four years. If you saw the report yourself, or associated media, you may have also seen that Victoria was reported as being the only state to record an overall decrease in the number of businesses, with business exits outstripping business entries for the first time.

As I said to 3AW’s Neil Mitchell, over the past twelve months there has certainly been a drop in confidence felt throughout the business community, reflected through the ABS statistics, surveys we have conducted with our members through the Chamber and via conversations with business owners and leaders. However, the data also reflected that over the last four years, Victoria has increased its business numbers in total. This is a blip on our records and not one to cause panic, but certainly one to acknowledge and move forward from. We will continue working closely with the Government to ensure the downturn is reversed, and we can grow confidence and help create better conditions for people to do business here in Victoria.

In more advocacy news, there has been rumours and murmurings about a proposed bed tax by the Victorian government. It continues to spark debate and discussion amongst various stakeholders. We have taken a firm stance against its implementation unless it is imposed at a national level, and any money raised being ring-fenced for use in growing tourism. We believe that a unilateral approach by a single state could lead to unintended consequences, including creating an uneven playing field for businesses and affecting the overall competitiveness of the Victorian tourism industry. Together with Australian Hotels Association CEO, Paddy O’Sullivan, we have met with Minister Dimopolous to explain our position and were happy with the conversation.

Enjoy the next few weeks, and I can’t wait to farewell winter. I’m excited for our Spring events calendar which is one to keep an eye on and secure your tickets early. I hope you can join us for more of our exciting networking events that we have coming up.

Have a wonderful weekend!